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Dyn Looking To Open First Farm-To-Table Corporate Restaurant In NH

Manchester, NH — In an effort to offer staff healthier eating options, Dyn is proud to announce the opening of a employees-only café located at 90 Dow Street in Manchester and their application to be one of the first farm-to-table certified private restaurants in the state.

Dyn Chief Operating Officer Gray Chynoweth and executive chef Kevin Donahue, formerly of XO on Elm, have been leading the charge on the café. Donahue has worked personally with Charlie Burke, president of Farm to Restaurant Connection, a volunteer organization that puts local farmers together with restaurants and chefs, to get the Dyn Café as close to farm-to-table certified as possible. Within the café, Donahue plans to use local produce, cheese, eggs and other dairy products.

“If I can’t meet the farmer and if he can’t come in and visit with our employees, then we shouldn’t be serving it,” Chynoweth said. “We strive for integrity and transparency with our customers and we feel that applying that same philosophy with this venture is part of who we are as a company.”

The café is currently in the process of getting certified, based on a point system that was developed by the Farm to Restaurant Connection to reward restaurants that support local farms. For a private dining facility like Dyn’s to be even interested in getting certified is unique.

“I never envisioned that a private facility would be attempting certification,” said Burke. “This is an exemplary effort by Dyn. Of course, once I got to know the folks there, it didn’t surprise me at all.”

The 42-seat restaurant, which has a private executive dining room that seats up to 16, will be open from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. In the morning, a variety of options will be available including an omelet bar, breakfast burritos and homemade granola. For lunch, employees will be offered a variety of deli sandwiches, a different daily hot lunch option, smoothies and other homemade goodies.

The portions of these meals will be consistent with Dyn’s effort to encourage healthier eating habits amongst employees. This dedication to an increased quality of life is a long-time focus of the company and has led to the DynFit Challenge, which rewards exercise and healthy life choices.

Employees will be able to order their meals through internal instant messaging and smart phones. They will receive a message back alerting them their order has been filled. Food will be served at cost, giving employees a healthy and superb dining option at a fraction of the cost, while also allowing Dyn to fund the operation.

Besides great food, Donahue plans to offer cooking classes for Dyn employees, as well as other special opportunities not typically offered in most restaurants. Having worked in a variety of kitchens over the years, he is excited for this opportunity because it will be the most intimate dining experience of his career. He said he would tailor menu options to individual employees based on taste as well as dietary restrictions, like a need for gluten-free options.

“This will be more personal an experience than any restaurant I’ve ever been a part of,” Donahue said. “I’ll get to know the individuals and personalities behind the food. In doing so, I hope to do my part in improving Dyn’s already great culture.”

ABOUT DYN

Founded in 1998, Dyn is the worldwide Internet Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) leader, powering Managed DNS and Email Delivery for more than four million enterprise, small business and personal users. With nearly 20 data centers around the world and industry-leading uptime for over 13 years, Dyn’s commitment to customer relationships and engineering excellence shines every day. Uptime is the Bottom Line.